Who Should I Start? Jaylen Warren or Brock Purdy

Monday, January 5, 2:37 PM

Pittsburgh Steelers running back Jaylen Warren had been ceding touches to Kenneth Gainwell in recent weeks, but in Sunday night's division-clinching win over the Ravens, he carried the ball 14 times for 66 yards, while catching all five of his targets for an additional 33 yards through the air. The 19 total opportunities were his most since a Week 7 loss to the Bengals, and his reliability in the passing game could again be on display in a Wild Card matchup with the Texans. Houston's front seven has been one of the league's toughest fronts to run against, but with Warren and Gainwell, the Steelers can essentially move their running game into space with short passes, putting both in line for favorable PPR stat lines. With Warren also first in line to handle the bulk of carries, he makes for a sneaky start in the first week of fantasy playoff leagues.

Monday, January 5, 3:32 PM

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy (neck) "checked out good" after suffering a stinger on the final play of the game on Saturday night in the Week 18 loss to the Seattle Seahawks and should be full-go for Wild-Card weekend on Sunday versus the Philadelphia Eagles, according to David Lombardi of The San Francisco Standard. Head coach Kyle Shanahan said that he expects Purdy to practice in full this week and play on Sunday in Philly. The 26-year-old finished the year strong for his fantasy managers with 11 touchdown passes and just two interceptions in Weeks 15-18, but he was shut down by Seattle last weekend and threw for just 127 yards with no touchdowns and one interception. Purdy played in only nine games in 2025 due to a turf-toe injury, but he was incredibly efficient when on the field. He'll have another tough challenge on his hands in the first round of the playoffs against an Eagles defense that allowed the second-fewest fantasy points per game to QBs over the final five weeks.